Camera mounting assembly

ABSTRACT

A camera mounting assembly includes a base member or plate for holding a camera and a side member or plate. In an exemplary embodiment, lower slots on the base plate or side slots on the side plate are gripped by a vertical support&#39;s quick-release mechanism to mount the camera in a landscape or portrait orientation, respectively, the camera being generally centered and evenly balanced over the support in either case. The side member is detachably fastened to the base member, which modular construction permits separately timed purchase of the base member and side member as allowed by the user&#39;s budget and further permits breakdown of the assembly for ease of transport. The side member may be generally L-shaped with a lower arm length less than the side arm length, which also facilitates transport. Other components may be detachably added such as a hand grip facilitating freehand shooting with the camera.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/213,867, filed Aug. 19, 2011, which application claims the benefit ofU.S. Provisional App. No. 61/409,884, filed Nov. 3, 2010.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to a camera mounting assembly for mounting acamera on a vertical support, such as a stand or tripod. In particular,the invention relates to a mounting assembly for adjustably mounting thecamera on the vertical support in different orientations.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is known in the art to provide a vertical camera support including asupport platform having a quick-release mechanism, such as onemanufactured by ARCA-Swiss Phototechnik AG. This quick-release mechanismhas opposed jaws selectively moveable to a clamping position forselectively gripping slots that are formed in a carrier holding thecamera. The mounting mechanism may include a turnable thumb screw orpivoting lever for moving and securing the jaws in the clampingposition. This allows the camera to be quickly mounted on the support ortaken off the support for freehand shooting.

The support platform is mounted to the vertical camera support by meansof a ball-joint. This allows the carrier and camera to be pivoted from alandscape (horizontal) orientation to a portrait (vertical) orientation.The weight of the camera and carrier are substantially centered over thecamera support when the camera is in the landscape orientation. However,when the camera is pivoted about the ball joint to the portraitorientation, the weight of the camera and carrier are off kilter fromthe central axis of the camera support, thereby making the verticalsupport prone to being tipped over or making the camera more susceptibleto environmental factors such as wind drafts. Furthermore, if the camerais being used for close-up shots, the camera lens is significantlydisplaced along the vertical and horizontal directions duringrepositioning so that the vertical support must now be repositioned bothlaterally and vertically through tedious trial-and-error until theobject being photographed is brought back within the field of view ofthe camera lens.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,588,376 describes a camera holder in which the cameracan be adjustably moved along a bow-shaped arm between a landscapeorientation and a portrait orientation. However, this holder, with itsmultiple parts, is relatively expensive to manufacture and purchase andis not readily transported. Moreover, the camera and carrier are stilloff balance when the camera is in the portrait orientation therebycausing the camera and support to remain susceptible to undesirablevibration and being toppled over.

What is desired, then, is a camera mounting assembly which may be madeavailable for purchase at relatively lower cost while preferablyallowing the camera to be mounted in stable position on the support indifferent orientations without requiring adjustment of the support.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In a first aspect of the invention, a camera mounting assembly isprovided including a base member and a side member. The base member hasan upper portion configured to support a lower surface of the camera anda lower portion forming an opposite pair of lower slots. The side memberforms an opposite pair of side slots. The assembly further includes afastening element configured to detachably fasten together the sidemember and the base member such that when the lower surface of thecamera is supported by the base member, at least a portion of the sidemember is aligned with a side surface of the camera and such that a pairof moveable jaws of the quick-release mechanism are selectivelyengageable with the lower slots and side slots to adjustably mount thecamera in a landscape orientation and a portrait orientation,respectively, while maintaining the camera in a generally centeredposition over the vertical support. The detachable construction of themembers permits a user to purchase the base and side members at separatetimes as their budget allows while the slots formed in the membersenable quick mounting of the camera either in the landscape or portraitorientation while the camera is stably balanced over the verticalsupport.

In a second aspect of the invention, a camera mounting assembly isprovided including a base member and a side member. The base member hasan upper portion configured to receive a lower surface of the camera anda lower portion, the lower portion being adapted for selective mountingon the vertical support such that the camera is positioned in alandscape orientation. The side member is detachably fastenable to thebase member such that at least a portion of the side member extendsalong a side surface of the camera received by the base member, the sidemember forming an opposite pair of side slots adapted for selectivegripped engagement by a pair of moveable jaws of the quick-releasemechanism such that the camera is adjustably mountable in a portraitorientation. In addition, at least one of the base member and the sidemember include an alignment mechanism for automatically aligning thebase member and the side member as the base member and the side memberare being positioned for detachable fastening. The detachableconstruction of the members permits the entire assembly to be purchasedin parts, as the purchaser's budget allows, while the alignmentmechanism facilitates easy fastening of the members together.

In a third aspect of the invention, a camera mounting assembly isprovided including a base member and a side member. The base member hasan upper portion adapted to engage a lower surface of the camera and alower portion adapted to be selectively mounted on the vertical supportsuch that the camera is positioned in a landscape orientation. The sidemember has a side portion forming an opposite pair of inclined edges.The assembly further includes at least one fastening element adapted todetachably fasten the side member and the base member such that when thecamera is engaged by the base member, the side portion of the sidemember is aligned with a side surface of the camera whereupon theinclined edges are positioned for selective gripped engagement by a pairof moveable jaws of the quick-release mechanism so as to position thecamera in a portrait orientation. The modular construction of theassembly permits purchase of the entire assembly over an interval oftime and further permits breakdown of the assembly for convenienttransport. In addition, the camera may be mounted in differentorientations for providing both landscape and portrait shots.

The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of theinvention will be more readily understood upon consideration of thefollowing detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunctionwith the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an exemplary camera mountingassembly holding a camera and fully configured with base member, sidemember, and hand grip accessory.

FIG. 2 is top plan view of the camera mounting assembly of FIG. 1showing, in particular, details of the upper portion of the base member.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the camera mounting assembly of FIG. 1 showinghow a camera is removably inserted into the assembly.

FIG. 4 is top view showing use of the hand grip of the camera mountingassembly of FIG. 1 during freehand shooting with the camera.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the camera mounting assembly of FIG. 1 beinggripped in a landscape orientation by the jaws of a quick-releasemechanism of a vertical support.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the camera mounting assembly of FIG. 1 beinggripped in a portrait orientation by the jaws of a quick-releasemechanism of a vertical support.

FIG. 7 is a front view of the camera mounting assembly of FIG. 1configured with the base member alone.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the camera mounting assembly of FIG. 1configured with the base member and hand grip.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the camera mounting assembly of FIG. 1configured with the base member and side member.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the camera mounting assembly of FIG. 1showing, in particular, mounting features of the side member.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing further details of the side memberof FIG. 1 together with its fasteners.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing further details of the hand gripof FIG. 1 together with its fasteners.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a second embodiment of anexemplary camera mounting assembly configured to include a base memberand side member.

FIG. 14 is a plan view of the bottom of the base member of FIG. 13

FIG. 15 is a side elevational view of the base member of FIG. 13.

FIG. 16 is an elevational view showing details along the underside ofthe back flange of the base member of FIG. 13.

FIG. 17 is a side elevational view of the side member of FIG. 13.

FIG. 18 is a rear plan view of the side member of FIG. 13.

FIG. 19 is a top plan view of the side member of FIG. 13.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 shows a camera mounting assembly 20 that when fully configured asshown, includes a base member or plate 22, an L-shaped side member orplate 24, and a second camera accessory 26. The side member and secondaccessory are detachably fastened to a lower portion 28 of the baseplate, preferably at lower corner portions 30 a and 30 b depicted inFIG. 7. The second camera accessory may be configured as a hand grip 32as shown. As further discussed below, the modular and compactconstruction depicted enables adjustable mounting of a conventionalcamera 34 on a vertical support in a manner compatible with convenientpurchase, transport, and reconfiguration of the assembly.

The various pieces of the assembly 20 of FIG. 1 are each precisionmachined in a computed numerically controlled (CNC) process fromaluminum stock for a well-fitted, durable, and lightweight construction.Each piece is anodized satin black to match the camera finish.

FIG. 3 shows the camera 34 being removably inserted into the cameramounting assembly 20. The base plate 22 has an upper portion 36 adaptedto receive and hold securely the lower surface 38 of the camera (e.g., aLeica M8 or M9 camera for the particular base plate shown). Inparticular, referring also to FIG. 2, the upper portion 36 includes anupwardly projecting lip 40. This lip defines a shallow receptacle forholding, in close-fitting engagement, the camera's lower surface. Thisprevents the camera from twisting on the base plate about a directionperpendicular to the plane of the plate. More generally, the plate'supper portion is dimensioned to conform to the shape of the camera'slower surface without intervening cushioning. This reduces thepossibility of camera vibration because there is direct mass couplingbetween the camera and base plate and sponginess in the coupling systembetween the camera and vertical support is avoided.

Referring to FIG. 2, the base plate includes a catch mechanism 42 forselectively securing the lower surface to the upper portion by means ofa latch 44 mounted for pivoting movement between a first position 46(illustrated in solid line view) unlocked from the lower surface and asecond position 48 (illustrated in dashed line view) secured to thelower surface. The latch is controlled or operated from the lowerportion 28 by a lower handle 50 (FIG. 3). In this manner, the camera maybe easily and quickly released from the base plate to facilitate, forexample, secure digital (SD) memory card or battery swaps.

Referring now to FIG. 7, which shows the base plate 22 prior toattachment of the L-shaped side plate 24 or second camera accessory 26,the lower portion 28 of the base plate includes a raised central member52 forming an opposite pair of elongate lower slots 54 (the front slotbeing visible in the front view of FIG. 7). Referring again to FIG. 1,the side plate 24 includes a lower arm 56 and a side arm 58, these armsbeing in generally L-shaped arrangement with each other such that whenthe lower arm is detachably fastened to the base plate, the side armextends along or is aligned with a side surface 60 of the camera 34. Theside arm may form an opening 61 providing access to the side surface andreducing the weight of the side plate. The side arm forms an oppositepair of elongate side slots 62. In the embodiment shown, at least theouter side of each slot 54 in the base plate and each slot 62 in theside plate forms a dove-tail shaped edge (e.g., extending at aforty-five degree angle).

Referring to FIG. 5, the dovetailed slots 54 of the base plate 22 enablethe camera 34 to be securely mounted quickly on a vertical support 63 ina landscape (horizontal) orientation. In particular, the support may beconventionally provided with a quick release mechanism 64 havingmoveable jaws 66 that may quickly be brought into gripped engagementwith the lower slots merely by pivoting movement of a clamping lever 68.Similarly, referring to FIG. 6, the dovetailed slots 62 of the L-shapedplate 24 enable the camera to be securely mounted quickly on the samevertical support in a portrait (vertical) orientation wherein themoveable jaws are brought into gripped engagement with the side slots.From FIGS. 5 and 6, it will be noted that the camera may be quicklymounted in either the landscape or portrait orientation so as tomaintain a generally centered position over the vertical support, thatis, with the center point of the camera lens maintained in asubstantially centered position over the support. This enables close upshooting of a nearby object without the need to laterally reposition thevertical support even if the camera is repositioned back-and-forthbetween landscape and portrait orientations. At the same time, as alsoindicated in FIGS. 5 and 6, the weight of the camera and mountingassembly 20 maintain a position generally balanced evenly over thevertical support. This ensures the support is not easily toppled overand lessens the susceptibility of the camera to any vibrations thatmight otherwise occur due to external factors such as wind drafts.

As indicated in FIG. 4, the assembly 20 may also be completely removedfrom the vertical support 63, and the camera 34 conveniently handled byhand grip 32 for freehand shooting. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the handgrip is formed by an upper portion 70 of the second camera accessory 26,which upper portion extends along a front surface 72 of the camera beingheld by the base plate 22.

The mounting assembly 20 may be differently configured from its fullconfiguration shown in FIG. 1 depending upon the requirements of theoperator at a particular time. For example, the base plate 22 may beused by itself, as indicted in FIG. 7, to provide a quick-release mountfor the camera 34. Or, as depicted in FIG. 8, the hand grip 32 may bedetachably fastened to the base plate 22 to facilitate handling of thecamera during freehand shooting. Alternatively, the base plate 22 andside plate 24 may be detachably fastened together, as indicated in FIG.9, to permit the camera and assembly to be stably mounted on a verticalsupport in either a landscape or portrait orientation. It will berecognized that the modular construction of the assembly also permitsthe different components to be purchased at separate times in accordancewith the budgetary constraints of the operator.

FIG. 10 shows the L-shaped side plate 24 about to be attached to thebase plate 22. The L-shaped side plate 24 is detachably fastened bylower arm 56 to the base plate 22 at a lower corner portion 30 b of thebase plate. As evident in FIG. 10, the lower arm has a lengthsubstantially shorter than the length of both the base plate and theside arm 58 of the side plate. Indeed, as depicted, the lower arm isshorter than half the length of the side arm. This contrasts withconventional L-frames in which the lower arm, if not comprising the basemember, is generally coextensive with the base member. The present sideplate, with its reduced length lower arm, has a relatively flattenedprofile that may easily fit in the pocket of a transport bag or even becarried in the operator's breast pocket. The side plate also includes aneyelet 73 (FIG. 5) through which a camera strap may be passed forsuspended support of the assembly 20.

Referring to FIG. 7, the lower corner portions 30 a and 30 b of the baseplate 22 each define a stepped shoulder. Each stepped shoulder includesa back edge 74 a and 74 b, respectively, as defined by the raisedcentral member 52, and a substantially flat ledge 76 a and 76 b,respectively. Referring to FIG. 5, the lower arm 56 of the L-shaped sideplate 24 and the lower portion 78 of the second camera accessory 26 areeach detachably fastened along a respective ledge so as to lie insubstantially flush and abutting relationship with the raised centralmember of the base plate. This arrangement permits flexibleconfiguration of the camera with different component options compatiblywith a compact, streamlined construction that is free of any sharp edgesthat might snag the support or loose clothing during assembly remounts.Each ledge, moreover, is easily cleaned with just the wipe of a cloth,and there are no deep cavities needed for component mounting in whichdirt or other debris may accumulate.

Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, a plurality of socket screws 80 are usedto detachably fasten securely the lower arm 56 of the side plate 24 tothe ledge 76 b. The lower arm defines a corresponding plurality ofcountersunk holes 82 to receive the heads of these screws so as to avoidany sharp or raised edges. Use of socket screws is preferred overslotted screws because with slotted screws, it is more likely that thescrewdriver blade will slip during turning of the screws and damage thefinish of the side plate 24 or base plate 22. Similarly, referring toFIGS. 7 and 12, a plurality of socket screws 84 are used to detachablyfasten the lower portion 78 of the second camera accessory 26 to theledge 76 a. Referring to FIG. 10, a hollow chamber 85 may be formed incamera accessory 26 to reduce component weight.

Referring to FIG. 10, various elements of the side plate 24 and baseplate 22 cooperate together to ensure that as the lower arm 56 of theside plate is placed against ledge 76 b of the base plate, the lower armself aligns automatically in a unique position relative to the roundedouter margin 86 of lower corner portion 30 b. That is, the lower armself aligns in precisely that position where the countersunk holes 82 inthe lower arm exactly register with corresponding threaded holes 88formed in the ledge. Referring also to FIG. 11, these elements includethe back edge 74 b, a pair of guide pins 90 upwardly projecting from thelower arm, and a rounded rim 92 formed along the inner surface of thelower arm. More specifically, in positioning the lower arm on the ledge76 b, preferably the distal edge 94 of the lower arm is brought to restin abutment with the back edge 74 b, the side arm is then shiftedlaterally (perpendicularly to the front surface 72 of the camera) untilthe guide pins slideably engage corresponding guide holes 96 in theledge, and the side plate is then raised until the rounded outer margin86 comes to rest against the rounded inner rim 92. The socket screws 80may then be conveniently driven, one after another, through theperfectly aligned lower arm and ledge in order to detachably fastensecurely together the side plate and base plate. By this procedure,then, quick reconfiguration of the mounting assembly 20 to include theside plate 24 is facilitated.

Referring now to FIG. 13, this drawing illustrates a second embodimentof an exemplary camera mounting assembly 110 configured to include abase member or plate 112 and a side member or plate 114. This secondembodiment shares several features with the first embodiment describedabove. For example, the members of this second embodiment are preferablyprecision machined from a lightweight and durable material, such asaluminum, and the side member is detachably fastened to the base memberusing one or more fastening elements 116, in this case, a pair of socketscrews. As noted above, such modular construction permits the members tobe conveniently purchased at different times, as the user's budgetallows, and permits breakdown of the assembly for convenient transport.In addition, a projecting pair of guide pins 118 provide an automaticalignment mechanism that ensures the side member is properly positionedrelative to the base member as the two are placed together forfastening, that is, that the socket screw holes 120 and 122 in the baseand side plates, respectively, are precisely aligned. The guide pinsprevent, moreover, lateral slippage between the base and side plates asthe user starts to drive each socket screw into place. Countersinking ofthe screw holes 122 in the side plates and the flush alignment of thebase and side plates along their attached edges contribute to theassembly's streamlined profile and avoid any sharp edges that might snagthe support or loose clothing.

Referring to FIGS. 15 and 19, the base plate 112 and side plate 114 eachform an opposite pair of elongate side slots 124 a, b and 126 a, b,respectively, each slot having at least one side inclining at aforty-five degree angle to the vertical to provide a dovetailed edge.These dovetailed slots enable quick attachment of each plate to themoveable jaws of a quick-release mechanism, in particular, to aquick-release mechanism known as the “ARCA-Swiss” style. Hence, a camerasecured to the base plate 112 can be quickly repositioned on a verticalsupport provided with this mechanism between a landscape (horizontal)and a portrait (vertical) orientation in a manner similar to thatdepicted in FIGS. 5 and 6.

Referring to FIG. 13, the base plate 112 of assembly 110 forms athreaded hole 128 and a combination threaded hole and slot cavity 130.To secure the lower portion of the camera to base plate 112, preferablya knurl-headed screw (not shown) is driven through one or the other ofthese threaded passageways into a mounting hole in the camera's lowerportion. The upper portion 132 of base plate 112 includes an inclinedflange 134 shaped to conform to the back edge of the lower portion ofthe camera (the embodiment depicted is designed for a Canon 60d model).This ensures firm coupling between the plate and camera and therebylimits camera vibration.

Referring to FIG. 14, the bottom portion 134 of the base plate 112defines a hollowed-out chamber 136, which further reduces the plate'sweight, and a laterally spaced pair of threaded holes 138 a, b, whichare designed to mount short stubs (not shown). These stubs extend freelyinto lateral cavities formed within the upper face of the quick-releasemechanism and serve as safety stops. That is, when the slots 124 a, b(FIG. 15) of the base plate are loosely engaged by the jaws of themechanism, the base plate can slide relative to the jaws, but thislateral movement stops when one or the other stub hits an edge of thelateral cavity. Thus, for example, even if the user forgets to clamptight the jaws to the base plate and the camera is pivoted about a balljoint, the base plate will still be retained by the quick-releasemechanism and the camera will not accidentally drop. Referring to FIG.16, an indentation or marking 140 is provided along the underside of theflange 134 to visually indicate where the base plate should be centeredrelative to the quick-release jaws to enable proper centering of thecamera in the landscape position.

Referring to FIGS. 13 and 17, the side plate 114 has a side arm 142 anda lower arm 144 in generally L-shaped arrangement, with the lower armbeing substantially reduced in length relative to the side arm. Theresulting streamlined profile of the side plate permits the plate to beconveniently transported even in a narrow pocket. Referring also toFIGS. 18 and 19, a cutout 146 formed in the center of the side arm and anotch 148 formed along the upper edge of the side arm provide easyaccess to the side of the camera for operating camera controls androuting any cabling. Similar to the base plate, the back side of theside arm includes an indentation or marking 150 (FIG. 17) to visuallyindicate where the side arm should be centered relative to thequick-release jaws to enable proper centering of the camera in theportrait position.

Two different embodiments 20 and 110 of the camera mounting assemblyhave now been described. It will be recognized that other variants arepossible without departing from at least the broader principles of theinvention. For example, instead of being configured as a hand grip, thesecond camera accessory may comprise a custom flash arm, a videomicrophone holder, or some other component. The number of screw holesand guide holes in each plate may be reduced from the number depicted.Other self-aligning mechanisms may be provided to ensure properalignment between the base and side plates and to facilitate thefastening step. For example, a raised ledge or other projecting membermay be used. The base and side members may take a form not limited tostreamlined plates, possibly with or without the loss of one or moreadvantages, such as ease of manufacture, reduced weight, and convenienceof transport. Conceivably, other methods may be used to detachablyfasten the base member and the side member, such as detachableconnection of the base member with the lower portion of the camera suchthat a lower arm of the side member is retained in sandwiched positiontherebetween. These examples are illustrative, though in no wayexhaustive, of the types of variations possible.

The terms and expressions which have been employed in the foregoingspecification are used therein as terms of description and not oflimitation, and there is no intention, in the use of such terms andexpressions, of excluding equivalents of the features shown anddescribed or portions thereof, it being recognized that the scope of theinvention is defined and limited only by the claims which follow.

I/we claim:
 1. A camera mounting assembly for adjustably mounting acamera on a vertical support, a quick-release mechanism being providedwith the support, comprising: (a) a base member having an upper portionconfigured to support a lower surface of the camera and a lower portionforming an opposite pair of lower slots; (b) a side member forming anopposite pair of side slots; and (c) a fastening element configured todetachably fasten together said side member and said base member suchthat when the lower surface of the camera is supported by the basemember, at least a portion of the side member is aligned with a sidesurface of the camera and such that a pair of moveable jaws of thequick-release mechanism are selectively engageable with the lower slotsand side slots to adjustably mount the camera in a landscape orientationand a portrait orientation, respectively, while maintaining the camerain a generally centered position over the vertical support.